Job summary
- Main area
- Pharmacy
- Grade
- NHS AfC: Band 8a
- Contract
- Permanent
- Hours
- Full time - 37.5 hours per week (working shifts and late days)
- Job ref
- 193-7053316NCG
- Employer
- Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Royal Berkshire Hospital
- Town
- Reading
- Salary
- £53,755 - £60,504 per annum.
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 24/04/2025 23:59
Employer heading

Lead Pharmacists - General Surgery
NHS AfC: Band 8a
Royal Berkshire Hospital are pleased to announce that following our CQC inspection we have been rated ‘Good’ with inspectors reporting that we have made significant improvements. The Trust’s overall rating has also improved to ‘good’. This is a great opportunity to join our clinical or non-clinical teams to create a positive and motivating environment within our trust. Come and join our team in this exciting time of change as we pride ourselves, our staff and our services on excellence.
At the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust we put our patients at the heart of every element of health and care that we provide. The Trust works together as a community to deliver its vision which is “Working together to provide outstanding care for our community.”
We are Compassionate in our thoughts, words and actions
We are Aspirational and have a true desire to be dynamic and to innovate
We are Resourceful and responsible in the way we work and live
We are Excellent in our development, fairness and sharing best practice
Amazing things happen at the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust; delivered by amazing people so why don’t you come and join us. We offer a range of learning and development for all employees may you be clinical or non-clinical.
Job overview
The Lead Pharmacist role is vital to ensuring high-quality, safe, and cost-effective pharmaceutical care within General Surgery, Urology, and Ophthalmology. This position upholds compliance with legal, ethical, and professional standards while contributing to strategic planning and policy development. The Lead Pharmacist manages a specialist team, overseeing performance, recruitment, and training to maintain excellence in service delivery.
A key responsibility is optimizing medicines management, ensuring drug therapy is safe, effective, and cost-efficient. This includes expert consultation with medical and nursing staff, adherence to national guidelines, and participation in multidisciplinary team (MDT) ward rounds. The role also involves independent prescribing, supporting seamless patient care from pre-operative stages to discharge.
Additionally, the Lead Pharmacist plays a crucial role in clinical governance by attending strategic meetings, monitoring drug expenditure, and implementing infection control and medicines management policies. Their expertise extends to education and research, leading training programs for pharmacy staff and healthcare professionals while contributing to audits and clinical trials.
Main duties of the job
· Responsible for delivering the Trust's medicines optimisation agenda to patients admitted under the care of Surgery, with a particular focus on General Surgery, Urology, and Ophthalmology.
· Managing pharmacy staff working at a ward level within designated surgical wards
· Participate in various consultant ward rounds and clinics within specialties identified as key areas
· Provide Trust-wide extensive specialist support in an appropriate defined clinical area relevant to the care group. This will include developing collaborative partnerships across organisational boundaries.
Working for our organisation
We are one of the largest hospital foundation trusts in the country, and currently touch the lives of half a million patients in the west of Berkshire every year by providing high quality acute medical and surgical services for our local communities. The Trust strives to provide high quality, compassionate care for our patients and their families.
Our values:
- Compassionate
- Aspirational
- Resourceful
- Excellent
The town of Reading sits on the River Thames and is served by great road and rail links to London, Oxford, and Southampton. With excellent leisure and shopping facilities, and a thriving cultural scene, Reading is a wonderful place to live, work, and play and provides excellent facilities for families, including some of the best state and private schools in the UK.
The CQC rated the care provided by the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust as good.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
For further details on the role, please refer to the Job Description and Person Specifications attached.
Person specification
Education and qualifications
Essential criteria
- Master Degree in Pharmacy
- Postgraduate Diploma
- IP course
Desirable criteria
- ACP course
- Diploma tutor
- Leadership qualification
Experience
Essential criteria
- Extensive Hospital experience
Desirable criteria
- Service development
Applicant requirements
You must have appropriate UK professional registration.
The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Bilyana Doncheva
- Job title
- Lead Pharmacist Clinical Services and Workforce
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Telephone number
- 07817388334
List jobs with Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust in Health Science Services or all sectors